2014 Ongoing Match of the Year List

23. Cachorro v. Barbaro Cavernario CMLL 4/18

ER: Short match, but all killer no filler, like what all Lightning matches should be. This match essentially reminds you just how lame almost every single Lightning match is. These two are both young early standouts of 2014, and their hungriness shows through here as they actually come across as if they're fighting for reasons other than just doing cool moves. Which is not to say there aren't cool moves here, as there are. The opening mat stuff is real clean and slick, and things escalate quickly after that with Cachorro taking a wild bump over the turnbuckles and Cavernario hitting an insane and totally rewind-worthy dive from the apron, through the ropes past the turnbuckle. Wow. Back in the ring and Barbaro is a total caveman savage, pounding on Cachorro and tossing him around. Cavernario does the great Dick Murdoch "feet caught on the bottom rope" bump to the floor that…for whatever reason just makes sense to my brain for a Caveman to do. "I don't understand your modern ropes!" I loved Cachorro's high speed dive, and loved even more that when he went for a second one Cavernario ole's him right into the barricade. Cachorro gets full credit as he doesn't hold back, he commits to that dive just like he would one that hits flush. This missed dive of course sets up Caverario's maniac splash off the top to the floor, and I challenge you to find a splash that hits as powerfully as this one. It looked like it shifted Cachorro's internal organs. My only real complaint with the match is that after this splash and another beastly one back in the ring, Cachorro really should have been toast. His armbar finish seemed plenty plausible, but damn Barbaro's splashes need to end shit, not leave any doubt about the finish.

PAS: I have been loving this run of Busca de Idolo matches. There are three really great well rounded young wrestlers in Cachorro, Barbaro and Hechichiro and a bunch of crazy kids doing crazy moves. Really reminds me of the old WCW days when we would get awesome short workrate lucha matches on WCWSN or Worldwide. If I saw this match on Thunder in 1998 I would have lost my shit. Some cool early matwork just moves into hot death. The missed dives were nuts as were the hit dives and Cavernario just kills folks with his splashes. Almost all of these matches are worth watching, especially when the top scorers match up


2014 MASTER LIST